Type 1 diabetes in mice averted with cancer drug

A new international study led by the University of Copenhagen in Denmark has taken a
significant step toward the prevention of type 1 diabetes, by showing how low doses of a cancer drug
stopped it developing in disease-prone mice.

The treatment also protected the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas from being
destroyed.

Dr. Dan Ploug Christensen, of the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of
Copenhagen, and colleagues, report their findings in a recent online issue of the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences.

Type 1 diabetes is classed as an autoimmune disease, where for reasons that are not fully
understood, the immune system attacks the insulin-producing beta cells in the islets of Langerhans
in the pancreas. The body needs insulin to help regulate blood sugar.

There is currently no cure for the disease, which has to be treated with several insulin
injections a day.

The incidence of type 1 diabetes varies widely among differents part of the world, but overall
it is rising at around 3% a year. Scientists believe the risk of developing the disease is a
combination of genes and environment.

The cancer drug lowers 'sterile inflammation'

"Diabetes is a growing problem worldwide. Our research shows that very low doses of anticancer
drugs used to treat lymphoma - so-called lysine deacetylase inhibitors - can reset the immune
response to not attack the insulin-producing cells.

He says when they gave the drug to mice prone to develop type 1 diabetes, they found fewer
immune cells in the pancreas, and more insulin was produced.

For the study the researchers used drug doses that are 100 times lower than those used in
treating cancer. The lower doses have been shown to be safe in children with certain rheumatic
diseases.

The drug works by blocking the molecules that send harmful inflammation signals to the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, as Dr. Christensen explains:

"In doing so, it prevents the cells from producing a number of factors which contribute to
destroying the cells when exposed to inflammation."

The cancer drug also delayed destruction of human insulin-producing cells

The researchers also showed that the cancer drug delayed the destruction of human cells in
donated insulin-producing tissue that was subjected to the inflammation signals.

The next step will be to test the drug in clinical trials to see if it prevents development of
type 1 diabetes in people at higher risk for the disease, for instance in those whose close
relatives already have it.

In that study, led by Stanford University School of Medicine, researchers tested a DNA-based
vaccine that switches off the part of the immune system that destroys insulin-producing pancreatic
cells. The vaccine is unusual in that most vaccines are designed to boost the immune system.

Comments(2)

There are safer and more effective alternatives to drugs to treat Diabetes. One, that can also be used with drugs such as Metformin, is Resveratrol. In two recently published human clinical trials done by respected medical schools it was shown that transmax resveratrol in the first study, and bioforte resveratrol in the second one, had the effect of reducing blood glucose, improving insulin sensitivity, lowering blood pressure and LDL cholesterol, and even lowering body weight. The scientist who did the transmax study stated, "Resveratrol can be an effective adjunct therapy for type 2 Diabetics currently using one of the Metformin like drugs, or who are controlling their Diabetes without drugs."

The type of diabetes the research regards is TYPE I diabetes, not TYPE II diabetes.

Type I diabetes is an auto-immune disease in which the insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells are destroyed so that no insulin is produced.

TYPE II is insulin resistance, treated with Metformin, exercise, and diet modification. In this type of diabetes, insulin is still produced, but can not gain entry into the cells due to the cell's resistance.

TYPE I is NOT treated with Metformin, or any other hypoglycemic drug because NO insulin is produced. Insulin replacement is the only treatment for this type of diabetes.

So, your assertion that "natural" products and Metformin, can be used to treat TYPE I diabetes indicates either an ignorance regarding the difference between the two types of diabetes, or that you simply did not read the article closely enough.

2017 Healthline Media UK Ltd. All rights reserved. MNT is the registered trade mark of Healthline Media. Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional.